The wind rushed by my hair as I ran out in the field bathed with moonlight. My now briar-laced sword was glowing with a dark-red flame, yet no flickers left my blade. The hatred from my soul that permeated the metal would not spread; it was mine….and mine alone. And it was all directed toward…..

  “Dawn! Get back here! Dawn!”

  The ear-screeching cries from the warden of my jail followed behind me as I stopped and turned around.

  This should be far enough. I’m too stupid to figure out no.1’s weakness in the midst of battle, I’ll leave it to the lovable brainiac. All I can do is stall him here while 963 finishes the job!

  “I have nothing to say to you, Zagra!”

  I put my sword behind my shoulder and bent my knees, the flames burning fiercely by my hair. Taking a step forward, I planted my feet and pulled the sword over my head with both hands, slashing downward in front of me.

  “Sea Parter!”

  A large pillar of blood-red flames erupted from my sword, traveling like a swirling storm toward Zagra’s location. In response, he clasped both of his hands together, making flames leak from his palms. He jumped forward into the storm and released his hands, shooting fire with a counter-swirl from the bottom. It remained stationary, raging on for a few seconds, until, in a brilliant display of colors and heat, the storm dispersed.

  From it, he emerged practically harmless as he brushed some embers off his shoulder.

  “Tch!”

  “You should know my daughter, that flames won’t harm me. Now come, this is fruitless. If you keep exerting yourself like this, your illness will flare up.”

  “Shut up! I already told you, I can control it now! Just let us go!”

  “And I told you that I can’t believe your lies! You want to live a normal life, but you’re not a normal girl! But it’s ok! I’m here for you. I can get you anything you might ever want, as long as you stay–”

  “Oh yeah? Then I want my freedom!”

  I jumped forward and slashed downward once again. He was within range of my blade, so I brought it down on his left forearm. The second it reached him, bright armor materialized on his arm, as he looked at me with sadness.

  “Dawn, I don’t wish to fight you.”

  I pulled my sword back and went for a thrust to his chest, but he sidestepped and made no moves to attack afterwards. Switching my grip, I took a step in the opposite direction he was standing and slashed my blade while I jumped backwards. It created an arc of flame that slashed at his body, forcing him to materialize his signature armor throughout his body.

  The slashes I had made on his forearm and body had left dark red flames along his armor that he seemed to pay no mind to as he walked towards me.

  “Your freedom is the one thing I can’t give you. When you’ve proven obedience, and you can go 6 months without needing treatment, then I can take you on walks outside, and we can enjoy the scenery together.”

  “Do you even hear yourself?!”

  I stuck my sword in the ground and willed the flames on my sword to burst. The dark flames erupted from my sword, hitting him and everything in a 100-foot radius from it. This time, he didn’t summon his armor and just held his hand out to block it. The flames rushed by him and parted as if avoiding him. The only sign that showed it hit him in the first place was the dark flames permeating from his hand.

  “Enough of this, Dawn. No father wishes to do battle with their flesh and blood. Come back with me.”

  “You’re not taking me seriously at all, are you? Well, you never had in the first place, right?”

  “If this is about your friend, understand that he can’t leave either, but I can tell no.1 to spare him. He knows too much about this place, but if he’s willing to be your bodyguard, I could allow it.”

  “You’re going to sorely regret treating me like I’m just some kid throwing a tantrum. Look around.”

  He glanced around, and his eyes widened as he finally noticed. The shockwave from earlier wasn’t to hit him; it was to trap him. A circle of flames entrapped both of us inside it, as it rose up to the sky on all sides. The only thing in this world was him.

  “My daughter, I already told you that flames won’t work on me. This is a pointless trap.”

  “Try it then. I dare you.”

  He walked over to the flames and stuck his hand out, only to bring it back immediately once he felt pain.

  “I….can’t go through it?”

  He summoned the armor on his arm in another attempt, but took a step back in surprise once he noticed what was happening. My flames were eating away at his armor, eroding it. It originally was burning bright and fierce, but now a quarter of it looked as if it was rusting.

  Stolen story; please report.

  “Finally noticed? I told you, I’m not a little girl anymore. I’m your enemy. Those flames will eat away at you until there’s nothing left. Until those flames you take so much pride in turn to embers. And it won’t stop as long as I’m alive.”

  His expression narrowed as I noticed his muscles tensing.

  “Good, that looks perfect. Now that you see me as an actual threat, I can finally fight with nothing to lose!”

  I charged forward and slashed horizontally, leaving an arc of fire in its wake.

  “That doesn’t mean I’m going to give you time to rest, though!”

  His armor materialized throughout his entire body as he blocked with both arms. The corroding flames on his armor spread even further. This time, he didn’t just take the attack, though. From where my attack connected, a counter explosion burst forth from his arms. It blew me backwards as I dug the sword into the ground to steady myself.

  “I see it now, better than ever, since I’m looking at you as an equal. I can win!”

  From my sword, I willed the thorns to go into the ground and converge on Zagra. He ran forward in an attempt to subdue me, but didn’t expect the thorns to rise out of the ground. They lashed at him, and he wasn’t able to avoid them completely due to the suddenness of the attack. One ripped through the side of his face, but he was unfazed. As the other thorns lashed out at him, he ducked quickly, and a blinding light radiated from his body.

  I couldn’t see it, but I could feel my thorns being burnt. Footsteps pounded along the grass as I could hear him getting closer to me. I held out my other hand, and thorns extended from my body in front of me. I was still blinded, so I was using these as a deterrent from his attack. I could feel one of them draw more blood, but he grabbed the other and pulled it, causing me to go flying toward him.

  “I’ll show you what happens to children who don’t listen to their parents!”

  Before I could open my eyes, an immense searing pain was felt on my right cheek as I went flying in the opposite direction.

  “Argh! Not. Yet!”

  I recovered midair and coated my soles with flames. Right as I was about to collide with the wall of fire, I brought my feet up and started gliding on the wall.

  “You can–? Is this a Conditional Override?!”

  I stuck my hand out, and pillars of flames sprang from the wall toward him. They swirled like tornadoes, forcing him to materialize a shield on his left arm.

  “Urgh!”

  The flames pushed him back farther and farther until his back was against the wall.

  While the flames were barraging him from the front, I held my hand out, and the flames behind him stirred.

  “No, you wouldn’t!”

  “Take this!”

  A pillar of fire burst from behind him, as he was sandwiched by a spiral of dark red flames.

  “AAAAAAAAAAAGH!”

  He quickly spread his arms to do the burst attack he did previously. But as he was about to, I clenched my fist and a flower bloomed from the wounds the thorns made earlier.

  “I won’t let you!”

  They detonated, staggering him and stopping his attack. I then jumped from the wall with my sword over my head, dark flames bursting from the blade.

  I can win this! He can’t escape!

  I brought my sword down on his head, expecting to feel the ripping and tearing of flesh, but instead felt the clang of metal. His armor from earlier was back in full force and showed no signs of corrosion whatsoever. But he didn’t meet me with his armor; he met me with a sword made of flames as a helmet formed over his head.

  No, this is my last chance! I won’t let this slip!

  The flames burned darker until they were completely black as I used the thorns in my body to wrap around the blade.

  The newfound force caused his knees to buckle slightly, but it wasn’t enough. The flames were still attacking him, yet he remained stalwart, not giving an inch. My vision was beginning to turn red; the force and energy I was using for this attack was taking its toll on my body.

  I’m so close! Don’t let up!

  “AAAAAAAAAAAARGHHHHHHH! JUST GO DOWN ALREADY!”

  “You are strong, my daughter. But you lost the moment you fought me with flames.”

  Using force I had never seen before, he swung his sword, and light filled my vision, before a burning pain spread throughout my entire body.

  “Gagh!”

  The zone I had created with my flames was cleaved in two as I flew past it. I had no control over my body. I couldn’t move at all in the air, and from when we clashed, I had dropped my katana.

  My vision was restricted to the radiant moonlight. The moon felt so close that if I could, I would reach out and touch it. My vision of the moon was short-lived, however, as a burning figure overshadowed it.

  “Just….like always,” I whispered, blinded by the false eclipse coming closer and closer.

  “It seems I haven’t taught you enough discipline.”

  He brought his shining fist down on my stomach, and I rocketed toward the ground. However, even though I didn’t will it, thorns extended from my arms and back and stuck to the ground right before I reached it. They had dug into the ground like hooks and were pushing me up.

  ?

  I willed the thorns to leave the ground and brace around my legs, my slowed descent immediately quickened as I turned upright and landed. The thorns minimized most of the damage, but my legs felt weak and brittle. All of the energy I just spent fighting him came back to haunt me; all I could do was stand.

  “You wanted me to treat you as an opponent, did you not? This is the result of battle.”

  I regained my senses, and in my reddened vision, I saw the destruction his last attack had done. The entire field we were standing in was no more; it had turned into a barren wasteland devoid of life. From the sky, ash and soot fell as if an eruption took place, and it was hard to breathe.

  “Seeing this, you must realize your foolishness. Dawn, let us go back. I do not wish to inflict further harm on you.”

  963 is fighting for his life right now. Would he run from this situation? If it was for the sake of his freedom? No! Even if I’m scared, even if it feels impossible, I have to keep fighting! I have to….Or I wouldn’t be able to look him in the eye ever again.

  However, lingering in the back of my mind, I could feel it. My body for so long had been weakened and in pain for so long because of the thorns, and I’ve received so many treatments. I am more in touch with my body than anyone else, which is why I know when I’ve reached my limit. The very same thorns that have hurt me for so long were the only things letting me stand up. Yet, this was due to my mental control, and with each attack that hit me. With each harmful and hopeless thought, I could feel myself slowly losing to them. I couldn’t afford to let this drag on much longer.

  I spat on the ground at his motion for peace.

  “Shut up and come at me, you deadbeat failure.”